


Some Mistakes are Made, and That's Alright

by Izzy_at_Night



Category: The Umbrella Academy (TV)
Genre: 1968, 60's, Ben Hargreeves & Klaus Hargreeves Friendship, Crying, Guns, Hugging, Hurt/Comfort, I need season 2 now!, Implied blood, Kissing, Klaus is angry at the world, Klaus x Dave, M/M, Mentions of alcohol, Mentions of drugs, PTSD, Sad, Smoking, Time Travel, Umbrella Academy - Freeform, Vietnam, Vietnam War, Wartime, angsty, but mostly at his dad, established klave, inspired by a song I guess?, matching tattoos, mild homophobia, minor blood, morals and ethtics, not a fix it fic, soft, tattoo talk, vent fic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-01
Updated: 2020-05-13
Packaged: 2021-02-28 05:54:50
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,582
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22964992
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Izzy_at_Night/pseuds/Izzy_at_Night
Summary: Klaus awakens to find Dave alone, they talk. And then they fight a war together, but only one makes it out alive.And where is Ben?
Relationships: Dave & Klaus Hargreeves, Dave/Klaus Hargreeves
Comments: 1
Kudos: 63





	1. Chapter 1

_"Klaus....."_

_"Klaus please! Look.... Help!"_

_"help me!"_

_~_

Klaus bolted upright in his cot. His chest heaving and working overtime. His hands were drenched in sweat.

His cot creaked slightly as he shifted his hands from one to the other. The echoes of the dead were still whispering in his mind, so at first it was hard to notice that the tent was completely silent. Well... save for one snoring softly in a corner. Klaus buried his head in his hands, wiping the tears that had stained his face. God.... he wished Ben were here. Where was he?

Klaus ran his fingers over his biceps, tracing his regiment's tattoo slowly with his ring finger. He inhaled and exhaled and some of the screams that bounced around his newly sober mind like a ping pong ball against cement subsided. He swung his legs over the side of the cot and stood. He grabbed his vest and shrugged it over his shoulders. He exhaled again, wiping the sleep from his eyes and shuffling his fingers through the pockets until he found what he was looking for. A pack of cigarette's and a singular match. He was told by _someone_ to save it for emergencies. Ehhh... fuck them. 

This was much better.

Klaus glanced around the tent, he turned his head to the left and squinted through the lazily flapping tent entrance. Someone was sitting outside. Dave. He started over, trying to be extra careful while passing through the heavy canvas. 

"Dave?" 

Dave's head turned. His face softened when he saw the familiar face. 

"Evenin' Klaus" 

"I'd thought you'd be asleep Davey." breathed Klaus, planting himself down beside Dave, offering him the box of cigarette's before taking one of his own. 

"Yeah, well... being in a war takes advantage of sleep"

Klaus smiled, striking the match alive and lighting up his cigarette. He released it from his lips after breathing in a long drag, a smoke cloud with swirls raising high into the dark Vietnam sky. 

They sat there in silence for a long time, just smoking. Occasionally Klaus would look over and stare. Dave was truly a sight to behold. Klaus had to be more careful about when he could actually show any affection towards his beloved since he learned that this time wasn't so forgiving to those who loved the same gender. That's why this moment was important. Right now, he could take in as much of Dave's features as he wanted so save in a memory for later. 

"What I wouldn't kill to see my family's reaction to you right now" Klaus said suddenly. 

"Your family? Wouldn't they find it unnatural that we...are...?" Dave replied.

Klaus shook his head, he placed his free hand on Dave's knee making circles with his thumb. He took another drag. 

"God no. My family is a piece of shit when they want to be but they defiantly don't hate people like us." 

"Good." Dave said firmly. Klaus squinted.

"They're still a piece of shit though." 

"Yeah?" 

"Yeah."

"Tell me about them." 

Klaus almost laughed. "It's pretty complicated Davey, it ain't no walk in the park. you sure you wanna hear about it?" 

Dave placed his hand over Klaus's and squeezed it tightly. "I wanna know everything about you." 

Klaus blinked and breathed, another puff of smoke leaving his lips. His cheeks turned crimson. "You really are going to be the death of me, Davey." Klaus released his hand from Dave's and swung his arm over his shoulders. "Alright" he said, "Okay." 

So Klaus talked about his family, he explained that he was from a family of seven siblings who he barley even known most of his life. He told Dave how their father had them training all of the time so each one of them hardly had any time to actually get to know one another. Well.. apart from Ben. Klaus talked about Ben the most. During childhood Klaus and Ben had been inseparable. They were a team together. It probably helped some to have Ben on his side because Klaus couldn't actually do much on the battle field except chat up the recently departed souls of the villain's they were fighting. It was good to have Ben, Klaus would have been good. But Ben had to go and fucking die so it messed everything else up for Klaus. 

Not that everything else wasn't fucked up, their Dad was a right prick too. 

"Can you talk to him?" Dave asked when Klaus was finished, "Ben I mean?"

Klaus extinguished his cigarette in the dirt beside him. "Yes. But I don't know where he is right now." 

"I'm sorry"

"Don't be, he can be a pain in the ass sometimes too." 

Dave leaned his head against Klaus's shoulder. "I've gotta go up to the front lines tomorrow." 

"I'll go with you" 

Dave bolted up. "No. Absolutely not Klaus. You can't put yourself in danger like that." 

"I'm in a war zone, Davey. Danger is the least of my worries." 

"But-"

"Nope, already decided. I'm going." 

"Klaus-" 

Klaus silenced him by pressing his lips softly against Dave's. It was brief, but Klaus hoped that it was enough to convince him. 

"Fine." Dave said. "Please be careful though." Klaus nodded. Dave sighed, "I don't know what I'd do if I lost you." 

Klaus tried to smile, "and I don't know what I'd do if I lost _you_ " 

Dave then suddenly reached behind his head and pulled off his dog tags. "Here"

Klaus hesitantly took them. "Dave.." 

"Just in case." Dave whispered. 

\-----

The front lines were loud. It was terrifying, and mesmerizing all at the same time. Klaus was issued a gun along with the rest of the team. He'd kept close to Dave on the bus the whole way up. At some point Dave had threaded his fingers through Klaus's but Klaus didn't notice until Dave let his hand fall and his hand felt empty when they left the safety of that rackety old bus. 

At first it was a lot of gunfire and yelling commands. Bombs going off every which way, and the dust falling over his skin and eyes. Then there was the hiding, everyone lain on their stomach's clutching their guns and keeping their heads bowed as the gunfire from the other side rained down on them. There was a loud bang next to Klaus that dangerously grazed his cheek, and Klaus could feel the thick heat oozing down his face. It stung like a motherfucker. Klaus breathed out, at least Dave was okay. 

"That was a close one, huh Davey?" 

Dave didn't respond. He didn't even move. 

"Dave?" 

Klaus reached for him, and shook him. 

"D-Dave!" No. No. No _NO._

He rolled him onto his back with shaking hands and gasped loudly when he saw the large dark stain spreading outwards from Dave's ribs. 

"Dave! come on! Stay with me Dave!" He patted Dave's cheek as he saw that his eyes were starting to close. Then Dave coughed loudly, the crimson covering his lips and rolling down his chin. 

Klaus raised his head and looked desperately through the mix of dust, fire and yelling. 

"MEDIC! I NEED A MEDIC!" 

Klaus rid himself of his helmet, and tried to put pressure on Dave's wound. "Come on stay with me Dave! Stay with me- No No No No!" 

Klaus was crying now, his tears mixing with the wound on his cheek. "Please stay with me! Don't leave me please!" 

And with his last ounce of strength, Dave raised his hand and and cupped Klaus's cheek. "Stay strong, my darling." He tried to say. But his mouth was already filled with blood, so it came out more like a coughing, choking murmur. 

"No! don't speak it's gonna be okay! oh damnnit- MEDIC!" 

Klaus left his gaze from Dave, and when he looked back. Dave had gone. 

"DAVE! NO!" He pulled Dave's lifeless body close to his chest, crying into his face, and screaming bloody murder. When a medic finally showed, and heaved Dave's body and a kicking and screaming Klaus from the battlefield it was far too late. Dave was dead. 


	2. Chapter 2

"Hey wake up Klaus... it's over"

Klaus opened his eyes and when they finally decided to focus he saw a face he didn't think he'd ever see again. 

It was Ben. 

"Benjamin! long time no see bro." Klaus sat up and looked at his surroundings he was in a medical tent, it was bright and filled with soldiers from last night on medical beds not unlike the one he currently lay on. About a dozen nurses tended to the wounded and sick, while others stood valiantly and watched the dead be carried away on trucks. Oh right. He was still here in Vietnam. Klaus ran a hand over his face, there was a bandage taped onto his cheek where the bullet had grazed it and a feeling in his heart that hurt worse then being sober. Oh...

Dave. 

Dave was gone and he was never coming back. 

"I noticed that you got some new tattoos" Ben said and Klaus turned his head to look at him. "What would dad say about that?"

Klaus groaned. 

"Look I don't want to hear about Dad right now because I don't know if you've noticed Benny boy but he isn't here!" He narrowed his eyes and glared at Ben. He looked exactly the same, like no time had passed at all, like Klaus hadn't been trapped in 1968 Vietnam for nearly ten months, like he hadn't even cared that Klaus had lost the love of his life.   
"Where were you by the way?! Cause you didn't even decide to show your stupid face while I was- I don't know if you noticed- fucking sacrificing my life!" 

Ben flinched. "I didn't have a choice Klaus! When you went back in time I couldn't get through because I wasn't even born yet. I had to make a deal with another soldier who died and swap places with him in order to talk to you."

Klaus just stared up at the dusty canvas covering his head. He breathed out and forced himself to swing his legs over the side of the bed. Klaus looked to his right and saw that his vest was hanging on a metal bed post. He reached for it. 

"I wouldn't do that Klaus" Ben warned. Klaus rolled his eyes and grabbed it anyways. "What are you gonna do? haunt me to death?" he put it on. His boots were at the foot of his bed so he began to put them on also. 

"Thats new" said Ben. Klaus looked up at him. "What are you on about?" 

"The dog tags." Klaus looked down. The dog tags swung from his neck on a metal chain and they glinted a little in the sunlight. Klaus frowned, and tears threatened his eyes. "Oh yeah, they umm... belonged to a friend." Klaus turned his attention back to lacing up his boots. When he had finished he stood up, he needed to get out of here.

When he left the medical tent, Ben close behind him, he went straight for his regiments tent. There he found the black suitcase that had brought him here. He wasn't even sure if it would work anymore, or if he would even get back to the present day, but he didn't care. Klaus wasn't interested in a world without Dave and anywhere where there wasn't a constant reminder of the death of his lover, sounded like heaven. 

\--------------

_They had the weekend off. They were free to explore the surrounding villages while the staff stocked up on new supplies. The first free night that "The Sky Soldiers" had was probably the best night that Klaus had ever experienced in his life. It was Dave's idea really to go to the dance, Klaus was totally up for it. Dancing, drugs and alcohol were all things Klaus loved and with a handsome man coming along with him? Klaus couldn't resist it. There had been a moment when both Dave and Klaus had been a little intoxicated and Dave pulled Klaus behind a curtain. Klaus stumbled with him holding a glass of whiskey. They laughed together and drank together._

_And then... Dave had grabbed Klaus's face and pressed it against his in a sweet kiss. The world seemed to go in slow motion and for the moment Klaus didn't care that they were in 1968. All he knew was that he was being kissed by Dave and everything else fell into place._

_In the day that followed Dave led Klaus around the small town and to a tattoo parlour. When Klaus had shown Dave his hand tattoos later that night, Dave suggested that they get matching tattoos. of course Klaus agreed._

_And so there they were, standing in front of the only tattoo place in the whole town. Dave reached out and threaded his fingers through Klaus's and with his other hand he pushed through the door of the parlour._

_It was small and cramped but Klaus and Dave didn't mind._

_"So what we going to get?" Dave asked. Klaus smiled._

_"Did you see the temple on our way here? it was wonderful. I want to get that."_

_"A temple? I didn't think you were the religious type." Dave mused._

_"I'm not, I just love the architecture. It seems like the romantic thing, I dunno."_

_In the end they both decided to get abdomen tattoos of a Thai temple. The temple had many symbols adorning it. Symbols of peace, war and death. It was probably a little too dramatic but Klaus didn't really care. To make it special to them, Klaus asked for the words "UA Klaus loves Dave" in Vietnamese to also be inked into the design._

_"Sap" Dave chuckled when Klaus told the artist._

_Klaus just grinned. Dave in turn got his matching temple tattoo along his chest with a similar message. "Dave loves Klaus."_

_It was the only tattoo besides his Sky Soldiers tattoo that really had any meaning to him._

_\----------------_

Klaus pulled the suitcase out from under his bed and pulled it onto his lap. This was it. Ben kneeled down beside him. "It's okay Klaus..." Ben started. "I'll be there wherever you arrive. I promise." If Ben could reach out and touch him Klaus was sure that his hand would be around him. Too bad he was dead. 

"I didn't tell you but... I... I fell in love Ben" 

"What?"

"The person who gave me the dogtags. His name was Dave."

"Oh Klaus..."

"He was my everything Ben! I loved him! More that I've ever loved myself! How am I going to live now that he's gone!?" Klaus wailed. 

"You'll find a way, I know it. You always do." 

"Not this time. Drugs aren't an option anymore. I owe it to him not to give in to that kinda stuff anymore." he explained. 

Klaus exhaled "just- please go away for a bit. Come back when I get home. _if_ I get home."

Ben nodded and then... Klaus was alone. 

As soon as he was gone the tears started to fall and the memory of Dave burst into his mind. The noises, the gunfire, the dust and..., the blood. So much blood and there was nothing he could've done. 

Klaus pressed his thumbs against the suitcase latches and thought of the academy. "I'm sorry Dave... I wasn't fast enough" He closed his eyes. 

And then opened the lid. 


End file.
